HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/19/2010 Work SessionCity of Springfield
Work Session Meeting
MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION MEETING OF
THE SPRINGFIELD CITY, COUNCIL HELD
MONDAY, JULY 19, 2010 „
.The City of Springfield Council met in a work session in the Jesse Maine Meeting Room, 225 Fifth
Street; Springfield, Oregon, on Monday, July 19, 2010 at 6:00 p.m., .with Mayor Leiken presiding. .
ATTENDANCE ~ -.
Present were Mayor Leiken and Councilors Lundberg, Wylie, Leezer, Ralston, Simmons, and
Pishioneri. Also present were City Manager Gino Grimaldi, Assistant City Manager Jeff Towery; City
Attorney Joe Leahy, Assistant City Attorney Mary Bridget Smith, City Recorder Amy Sowa,-and
members of the staff.
1. Classification and Compensation Study.
Human Resources Greta Utecht presented the staff report on this item. Council authorized funding for
consultant services in the 2008 fiscal year to conduct a compensation & classification study for the.
City. The study was started, but with the change in Human Resource staffing in July 2009, was
suspended for several months. During the past eight months, a new classification structure -was
developed and the study was now back on track. This presentation was intended to bring Council up
to date on the entire project.
The goals of the study remained the same as those presented in 2008: ~ .
1. To update and redesign the position classification system;
. 2. To redesign the compensation plan to most effectively support the strategic objectives.of the
' ~ City; and -
3. To establish salary ranges, that are appropriately competitive with our comparable and relevant
labor markets.
The last evaluation of the City's classification and compensation system was conducted over 25 years
ago. This resulted in a system that was inflexible, unresponsive to rapidly changing business needs,
and increasingly difficult and costly to administer. The current system utilized 120 separate
classifications for defining the work performed by the City's non-sworn personnel, while the proposed
structure reduced the .number of classifications to twenty (20), which should result in a much simpler
.system to administer and more flexibility in responding to service needs.
In moving to a broader structure; the City would also, have. to redesign its pay plan. The current pay
plan used afive-step pay grade system with five percent (5%) between each step. A broader pay plan
would allow for the greater span of responsibility within each new ~ classification, and would. be more
market based than the current plan.
An adequate position classification system and competitive salary ranges were critical to attracting and
retaining qualified employees. The City had attempted to maintain total compensation rates (base pay
plus the value of city paid fringe benefits) that were approximately equivalent to the average of
comparable governmental agencies in the region. However, the last comprehensive review of salaries
for non-union positions took place in 1995 and review of pay rates for unionized positions had been
limited to collective bargaining and reactive job specific adjustments. ~ ~ .
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City of Springfield
Council Work Session Minutes
~. July 19, 2010
Page 2
In addition to the attached list of public agencies to be surveyed for the market study, Fox Lawson &
Associates (the consultant performing the study) would be able to access several private sector surveys
because of their recent merge with Gallagher & Associates, national consultants specializing in private
sector compensation and benefits.
Depending upon the negotiated implementation approach, the possible cost of implementation
beginning in FY 2011 could range from 2% to 4% of annual salary.
Ms. Utecht referred to Attachment 1 of the agenda packet which was the power point Ms. Utecht had .
presented to staff to re-acquaint them with this process. Most of SPA and IAFF were not part of this
study, however all positions in OPEU, AFSCME and non-union were affected. There were currently
..about 120 different classifications that described the jobs at the City. She noted the complexity and
. inflexibility in the current classification and compensation plan. Adequately describing the work
being done was very important for. many reasons. Decision banding was the methodology used in this
process to describe the work. She explained. Decision making was the common denominator in
putting together this plan.
Ms. Utecht said the City took 120 classifications and narrowed them down to 19 bands. Each
classification would have separate pay grades, allowing flexibility to move people around in each
classification without having to go through a lengthy reclassification process. The classification,
document had been sent off to the consultant and they were ready to move forward with the
.compensation survey. She referred to Attachment 3 of the agenda packet which included a list of
public organizations to be surveyed. Thirty-six jobs had-been selected as~benchmarks to be used for
the compensation study. Not every organization would have a1136 positions, so many agencies were
used in order to get 5-10 solid matches on these :positions. She noted the merger of Fox Lawson to
Gallagher and Associates, which meant access to private sector salary reports. Generally speaking, it
was difficult to get detailed figures from private sector businesses, such as benefits.
Ms. Utecht said once the survey results were in, she would come back to Council to talk about- where
the City of Springfield should be in the market. The consultants would build a draft pay plan based on
middle of the market, and build a number of different pay plan structure options for the Council to
consider. Currently, the city had a 5 x 5 step plan -five steps per pay grade with a five percent
increase between steps, totaling 20% within the entire classification. The 5 x 5 pay plan would not be
broad enough with the new broader range of classifications. A broader pay plan would be needed to
incorporate all the jobs in each classification, but they were not sure what that would look like. She
referred to the chart on page 3 of Attachment 1 of the agenda packet and said it was .a sample from
Lane County. She explained why the County chose that particular pay structure. She wouldn't
recommend a five step pay plan with the new structure, but they may not need a nine step such as
Lane County. She hoped they would go to an odd step plan because it helped determine the middle of
the scale.
Ms. Utecht said the survey results should be in by August 13, with information ready by the end of
August. Staff would be negotiating with the bargaining units as information.was brought forward.
Implementation would be key to this process. They. should be able to implement the new plan by the
first of January, 2011. .
Councilor Ralston asked about a merit pay for job performance. He was hoping the City would get to
that point. He noted other models that could be available in the private sector. FarWest Steel was set
up on a performance range. He like the merit based pay.
City of Springfield
Council Work Session Minutes
July 19, 2010
Page .3
Ms. Utecht said the City needed to be careful if they chose to implement a performance pay plan, or
merit pay plan. A system with a set of clear objectives and expectations would be needed and -
evaluated very objectively. They were not there yet. Her recommendation would be that whatever pay
plan was chosen this fall remain flexible enough to implement performance pay in the future. She
noted the difference in using that type of pay plan in the private sector compared to the public sector.
The private sector did not have to disclose what they paid and the City's pay was public information.
It was difficult in a public sector venue with people getting different levels of pay. It often brought on
competition and comparisons which often affected morale. The City needed to proceed cautiously with
any performance measures.
Councilor Ralston said this would be complex at the beginning, and should be approached cautiously.
Councilor Simmons said he would like to see sample questions for the survey. When looking at -
comparators within agencies and the private industry, it would be nice to look at the questions. Not all
agencies would be using the same branding data. It would be nice.to have some of the data available.
Comparing positions in different cities involved a large range of responsibilities and requirements.
Ms. Utecht said the draft salary survey should be done tomorrow and she could send that out to the
Mayor and Council. When talking about benchmarks for the positions, the City had listed what each.
position (such as the City Recorder) did and compared that to the closest match in the other agencies.
The salary survey also addressed benefits, premium pay, and when pay increases were last given.
Councilor Simmons referred to the City Recorder and the certifications and duties associated with that
position. Looking at staff at the City, the jobs they did compared to their job descriptions was very
broad. It was hard to categorize.
Ms. Utecht said each position would retain specificity in the new plan, but for ease of administration
they were being classified in groups. When they asked for comparables, they didn't ask what the group
title made, but what the specific position made or the position closest to that description. The
description for each job was based on what the person in each position described as their duties on the
questionnaire used for the study. It was not a perfect instrument, but was pretty close.
Councilor Lundberg said it was good and easy to follow with broad categories. It was important to her
that the public would be able to understand. She liked that it was more fluid in terms of how people
could move within the organization. Many jobs would be surveyed and could be closely matched. It
was one of the gripes from private employees about what the public sector got paid and the benefits
they received. She hoped the information from the private sector for this study would help with this
concern. She asked what would happen if no one from the private sector responded.
Ms. Utecht said aggregate numbers from the private sector were already available that should be easy
to use with some of our positions. Many of City's positions were not in the private sector. That's why
they were looking for as many matches as possible.
Councilor Lundberg asked if the results would be separated .out into private and public comparisons.
Ms. Utecht said the sources used to develop market analysis would. be identified along with how the
City of Springfield compared with the aggregate numbers. There .would be graphs and statistical
analysis based on the survey. Based on that, the bottom line would be where the positions were in
City of Springfield
Council Work Session Minutes
July 19, 2010
Page 4
relation to the market. She could provide a copy of the market survey that was used for the County,
although they were primarily management level jobs. Council wanted to see that survey.
Councilor Lundberg said it would be helpful to-see what was used and notes Ms. Utecht may have
from the County project. ~ :
Councilor Pishioneri said he would .like to look at comparatives in the private sector that could match
public sector positions. He would also like to look into why the City was not paying private sector to
do some of the jobs that were currently being done by the public sector at a higher cost.
Ms. Utecht said that would be a different project. '
Councilor Pishioneri referred to page 4 of Attachment 2 of the'agenda packet, and the Deputy Chief -
Fire Marshal.position. He asked about the licensing requirements.
Firefighter' Kevin Gray described the certifications required for firefighters and emergency medical
technicians. He noted the difference in the certifications between police and fire. The certification was
not required, but was attained for safety and liability.
Fire Chief Randy Groves provided more detail on the certifications, such as DPSS, and qualifications
of the firefighters. He noted that the City of Eugene was going through a similar process to update
classifications, so this was a good time to update that for both cities.
Councilor Lundberg asked what DPSS stood for.
Councilor Pishioneri said it stood for Department of Public Safety Standards. He discussed this
further. Councilor Pishioneri referred to page 5 'of Attachment 2 of the agenda packet, and the position
of police sergeant. He asked for clarification of the Training Supervisory Certification (DPSST) and
Training Management Certification (DPSST). .
Ms. Utecht noted that supervisory and management were the same.
Councilor Pishioneri referred to page 7 of Attachment 2 and the position of Police Officer Supervisor.
He asked if that was the records supervisor position..
Police Chief Jerry Smith said that was the office manager.
Councilor Pishioneri said he was looking for the position for the jail operations supervisor.
Ms. Utecht said it was listed under Manager/Municipal Jail Manager on page 8.
Chief Smith said the jail supervisor was a Springfield Police Association (SPA) employee so was not
part of this classification study. ~ .
Councilor Pishioneri referred to page 10 of Attachment 2 of the agenda packet and the position of
Executive Manager. The qualifications list `5-10 or more years'. He .asked if it could just read `5 or
more years' .
City of Springfield
Council Work Session Minutes
July 19, 2010
Page 5 .
Ms. Utecht said it was dependent on years of education and years of management experience. She
explained further.
Councilor Pishioneri asked about the licensing for the Police Chief..
Ms. Utecht said at the executive level, they didn't include the specific certifications.
Councilor Leezer asked if this.was to be implemented in 2011.
Ms. Utecht said it would go into effect sometime in 2010.
Councilor Leezer asked how the employees felt about the plan.
Ms. Utecht said after cleaning up and clearing up misunderstandings, they had been overall positive,
yet were waiting for the end result. Until each employee found out where they end up in this plan, it
was hard to know. They were less fearful of what would happen. When she started at the City last fall,
people were afraid there would be only one pay grade for each classification with only five steps. She
explained to staff that each classification could have many pay grades. The traditional way to move up
in an organization was to take on supervisory and management responsibility, and that was not for,
everyone. One of the things that was most appealing to staff with this structure, was that they could
,grow their career without having to be a supervisor or manager. The act of supervising or managing
people did not mean someone would get paid more. Technical and professional expertise played a
large role in this system, more than in the past.
Mayor Leiken felt that one of the biggest challenges was to find comparables in Oregon for the private
sector. Most private sector businesses were not going to give that type of information and he felt we
would need to rely more on the public sector comparables. He agreed with the concern of people
regarding the private versus public sector pay information. He noted.. that at one time, Oregon had.. the
fifth highest rate of small businesses.. ~~
Ms. Utecht said they were fortunate to have the consultants who had private sector reports. The private
sector was willing to share information for a study that they knew would only involve other private
sector companies, but not a public sector agency because.then it would be public. The consultant could
index the information to the cost of living in Oregon.
Councilor Wylie said she had been through this when on the board of Lane Transit District (LTD).
They did get a lot of information from the public sector so could be a good survey partner. She also
went through this with the non-profit she worked for and they found they were making about half of
the salary of their counterparts in government. It wouldn't hurt for .employees to know those
comparables. There were large organizations in the private and non-profit sector that. were making
much less.
Councilor Lundberg noted Springfield's ranking in the State regarding per capita income. She asked if
that was a factor regarding compensation.
Ms: Utecht said the consultant would price that index information based on those figures. They took
demographic and economic information into consideration. The compensation would be indexed at
Springfield's pricing level. ~ .
City of Springfield
Council Work Session Minutes
July 19, 2010
Page 6
Mayor Leiken said this was good and he was glad to see it happening.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 6:54 p.m.
Minutes Recorder-Amy Sowa
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Attest:
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Amy Sow
City Recor er
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